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SWERDLOW PUTS BAY AREA MALL ON MARKET

Swerdlow Group has put one of its two remaining retail properties on the market. The Hollywood, Fla.-based general developer is asking about $280 million for the Great Mall of the Bay Area, Milpitas, Calif., a 1.3 million-square-foot value retail-entertainment center outside San Jose, Calif. The sale of Great Mall would leave the firm with the 256,000-square-foot Las Olas Riverfront retail-entertainment center, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., as its sole retail property. Last year the company sold its stake in the 1.3 million-square-foot Dolphin Mall, Miami, which it had co-developed with Taubman Centers. But Swerdlow, which also builds industrial and residential projects, is not exiting the retail sector. It is developing the $1 billion Biscayne Landing residential community in Miami, which will feature a 100,000-square-foot retail center.

SPORTING GOODS CHAINS MERGE

The merger between The Sports Authority and Gart Sports is an attempt by both companies to compete with the low prices of Wal-Mart, observers say. If shareholders approve, the two will unite under The Sports Authority name sometime in the third quarter. The merger would create the largest sporting goods chain in the United States, with 385 stores in 45 states. Gart Sports has 180 stores in 25 states, while Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Sports Authority’s 205 units span 33 states.

KIMCO TO MARKET KMART CLOSURES

Kimco Realty entered into an exclusive joint venture with Kmart Corp. to market 317 stores that the bankrupt retailer plans to close. Under the deal, Kimco and Kmart will identify retailers, investors, landlords and other parties that could be potential buyers of the properties. Kimco executives did not disclose the venture’s financial terms, but Kimco Chairman and CEO Milton Cooper said his company will begin by acting as an “adviser.” At some point later, he adds, Kimco could invest its own capital into redeveloping some of the stores.

SIMON STARTS EXPANSION OF FORUM SHOPS

It won’t be open in time for this year’s ICSC Spring Convention or next year’s, but work has begun on the expansion of Simon Property Group’s Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Simon signed a ground lease with Park Place Entertainment, opening the way for the expansion, the second since the upscale project opened 10 years ago. At the opening of the expansion in the fall of 2004, Forum Shops, with sales per square foot of $1,300, will grow by 175,000 square feet, to 675,000 square feet.

OWNERS BRACE FOR POSSIBLE SPIEGEL BANKRUPTCY

Spiegel Group, the parent company of Eddie Bauer, warned at press time that it faces possible bankruptcy in the absence of alternative sources of financing. The retailer, which also publishes the Spiegel catalog, has been hobbled by cash flow problems stemming from its credit card business.

Morgan Stanley said the company might have to close about 250 of its 560 stores. Among owners, General Growth Properties, The Rouse Co. and Simon Property Group have the highest proportion of rents from Eddie Bauer, according to Morgan Stanley. The investment bank estimates that these companies receive 1.5 percent, 0.6 percent and 0.7 percent of their base rents, respectively, from the retailer.